It isn't easy being a werewolf. Especially when you're a newbie at shapeshifting.

Lucky, there's a group called Shapeshifters Anonymous that will help you work through the difficult times, like eating your friends, and shedding.

When recently turned werewolf Robert Weston Smith discovers his new found abilities in a humorous (but alarming) way, he seeks out the support group to help him figure things out. There he meets various characters who transform into assorted, odd things, including a sexy werecheetah named Irena.

But little did Weston know he'd been followed to this private gathering, by someone who wants to do the therianthropes a great deal of harm...

Shapeshifters Anonymous is a 12,000 word novella, specifically formatted for Kindle. It contains a handful of werepeople, a dash of romance, some gratuitous humor, and revisionist Xmas theories. It also has previews of Konrath's other work. It was previously published in the collection Wolfsbane and Mistletoe.

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J. A. Konrath's humorous horror novelette "Shapeshifters Anonymous" resembles an out-of-shape runner running a distance race. It gets off to a good start but sets too fast a pace, then runs out of gas in the home stretch and barely makes it to the finish line.

The premise is terrific. The protagonist, Robert Weston Smith, suffers from bizarre blackouts two or three nights a month, then discovers that he's been eating some pretty bizarre things during these blackouts. When his doctor can't find a rational explanation, he fears he may be turning into a werewolf and turns to a highly unusual self-help group, Shapeshifters Anonymous, where he meets with others like him.

Tongue is all the way in cheek in this one, and Konrath's dry humor works rather well in the beginning, which bears at least a passing resemblance to reality. Once Smith settles in at the meeting however, the story winds up spinning out of control very rapidly. Soon, he learns that he and his fellow shapeshifters are in deadly peril from Salvation Army Santa Clauses, who are demented followers of the real Santa Claus, who has been hunting shapeshifters for centuries. The climax is a huge battle between the forces of ho-ho-ho and those of the Animal Kingdom.

Any comic will tell you that timing is important in comedy. You have to give the audience just enough time to appreciate one joke before moving to the next. Konrath loses track of that principle, however. Rather than mine the comic possibilities of a group of people who turn into animals, he rushes into the big fight scene where he stacks one bizarre visual gag on top of another. Of course, these aren't visual gags in the cinematic sense... readers can't see the bizarre battle on screen where some effective FX work or comic acting might make it funny. Instead, they are descriptions of a deranged Salvation Army Santa doing battle with a turtle with vaguely human features. At some point in the narrative (and in my case it happened rather quickly), those descriptions lost any amusement factor whatsoever.

I realize that humor is very subjective and some people may find this entire concept hilarious. Unfortunately, I didn't. The snappy jokes of the first third of the book turned into, for me, the equivalent of a bad professional wrestling Battle Royale, and the story became a bit of a chore to finish, even at fifty pages. I admire Konrath's imagination and the highly unusual storyline he concocted here. I'm just disappointed that he couldn't maintain that premise for the entire length of the novelette.

I found this gem of a story as a free download. It also appears in the anthology titled Werewolves and Mistletoe.

It all starts when a man notices strange things with his bowel movements. His doctor finds some objects that aren't normally part of anyone's diet. Coming to the conclusion, he must be some kind of werecreature, he seeks help on the internet naturally. He finds Shapeshifters Anonymous.

This story had me laughing from page one and I didn't stop laughing until the last page. I can't tell you what was so funny without giving too much away. So just let me say, this story takes shapechangers in some entirely new directions.

I highly recommend this story. I plan on looking for the anthology to see if the other stories are as good as this one.

This story left me wanting for more. I found the basic concept, the mythos and history behind the story, to be delightfully new and fun. Genuinely entertaining.

The story wasn't perfect. Maybe if it were longer, some of the issues of timing would resolve themselves more naturally. Parts of the plot felt a bit rushed, such as the romance. Not out of place, just rushed. I would definitely pay (again) for a longer version of this story, or for a longer story about different people set in the same universe.

All-in-all, I'm happy to rate this story with 5 stars. While it had some weaknesses, I was so delighted by the read that the weaknesses do not get in the way of the entertainment.

Everyone has different taste, and not every book is for every person. While Konrath has mostly written in the horror or thriller genres, this story does not have the feel of horror to me. It's closer to urban fantasy, which is more my taste than horror is anyway (generally speaking). If you are looking for deep literature, this is not the story you're looking for. If you're looking for horror, read the reviews (even though people are terrible about not giving spoiler warnings) and decide for yourself. If you're looking for a story with no juvenile humor, this may not be for you. Konrath has a particular style, a particular kind of humor frequents many of this books. It's not for everyone (as I can tell by the reviews), but I enjoy it immensely.

My biggest complaint about this story is that it is too short. I want more!

This short story is the most Irreverent, hilarious story you will ever come across. Did you know that an old testament book of the bible was missing and was called the Book of Bob........and that Santa had made a deal with the devil ??? Okay that's all I'm telling you, other than there are some shapshifters and they are funny!!! Woke up everyone in my house I was laughing so hard!!! Was so funny my 28 year old daughter asked me WTF!!! So had to read it to her.......she was laughing more than me. Hubby was not amused by any of it and actually gotoffended by some of it. Sheesh......give me a break.....it's just a story......to entertain and amuse people. I loved it and hope others can enjoy it as entertainment and know it's not meant to be taken as truth.

Konrath is one of my favorite authors. It seems like no matter what he writes I'm awed. This short story is no different. I was definitely shocked when I saw how the whole story came together. It was so imaginative and fun.

Weston is worried, he's been finding stuff that shouldn't be there in his.... well after he uses the bathroom. Finally, after irrefutable evidence that something strange is going on he discovers a website for Shapeshifters Anonymous. I loved this. I was so upset when it ended so soon because I wanted more!!!

I can not recommend this author enough. This is now one of my favorite short stories.